THE ELECTION DAY DILEMMA
The Aldens’ cousin Alice is running for mayor in her town, and the children are helping with her campaign. But there’s something strange about one of the other candidates—nobody in town knows who he is. In fact, no one has ever seen him in person! It’s up to the Boxcar Children to find out who the mystery man is and why he’s running for mayor.
ALBERT WHITMAN & COMPANY
Publishing award-winning children’s books since 1919
www.albertwhitman.com
Cover art by Anthony VanArsdale
Printed in the United States of America
The Boxcar Children Mysteries
THE BOXCAR CHILDREN
SURPRISE ISLAND
THE YELLOW HOUSE MYSTERY
MYSTERY RANCH
MIKE’S MYSTERY
BLUE BAY MYSTERY
THE WOODSHED MYSTERY
THE LIGHTHOUSE MYSTERY
MOUNTAIN TOP MYSTERY
SCHOOLHOUSE MYSTERY
CABOOSE MYSTERY
HOUSEBOAT MYSTERY
SNOWBOUND MYSTERY
TREE HOUSE MYSTERY
BICYCLE MYSTERY
MYSTERY IN THE SAND
MYSTERY BEHIND THE WALL
BUS STATION MYSTERY
BENNY UNCOVERS A MYSTERY
THE HAUNTED CABIN MYSTERY
THE DESERTED LIBRARY MYSTERY
THE ANIMAL SHELTER MYSTERY
THE OLD MOTEL MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE HIDDEN PAINTING
THE AMUSEMENT PARK MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE MIXED-UP ZOO
THE CAMP-OUT MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY GIRL
THE MYSTERY CRUISE
THE DISAPPEARING FRIEND MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE SINGING GHOST
THE MYSTERY IN THE SNOW
THE PIZZA MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY HORSE
THE MYSTERY AT THE DOG SHOW
THE CASTLE MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE LOST VILLAGE
THE MYSTERY ON THE ICE
THE MYSTERY OF THE PURPLE POOL
THE GHOST SHIP MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY IN WASHINGTON, DC
THE CANOE TRIP MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE HIDDEN BEACH
THE MYSTERY OF THE MISSING CAT
THE MYSTERY AT SNOWFLAKE INN
THE MYSTERY ON STAGE
THE DINOSAUR MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE STOLEN MUSIC
THE MYSTERY AT THE BALL PARK
THE CHOCOLATE SUNDAE MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE HOT AIR BALLOON
THE MYSTERY BOOKSTORE
THE PILGRIM VILLAGE MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE STOLEN BOXCAR
THE MYSTERY IN THE CAVE
THE MYSTERY ON THE TRAIN
THE MYSTERY AT THE FAIR
THE MYSTERY OF THE LOST MINE
THE GUIDE DOG MYSTERY
THE HURRICANE MYSTERY
THE PET SHOP MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE SECRET MESSAGE
THE FIREHOUSE MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY IN SAN FRANCISCO
THE NIAGARA FALLS MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY AT THE ALAMO
THE OUTER SPACE MYSTERY
THE SOCCER MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY IN THE OLD ATTIC
THE GROWLING BEAR MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE LAKE MONSTER
THE MYSTERY AT PEACOCK HALL
THE WINDY CITY MYSTERY
THE BLACK PEARL MYSTERY
THE CEREAL BOX MYSTERY
THE PANTHER MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE QUEEN’S JEWELS
THE STOLEN SWORD MYSTERY
THE BASKETBALL MYSTERY
THE MOVIE STAR MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE PIRATE’S MAP
THE GHOST TOWN MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE BLACK RAVEN
THE MYSTERY IN THE MALL
THE MYSTERY IN NEW YORK
THE GYMNASTICS MYSTERY
THE POISON FROG MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE EMPTY SAFE
THE HOME RUN MYSTERY
THE GREAT BICYCLE RACE MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE WILD PONIES
THE MYSTERY IN THE COMPUTER GAME
THE HONEYBEE MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY AT THE CROOKED HOUSE
THE HOCKEY MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE MIDNIGHT DOG
THE MYSTERY OF THE SCREECH OWL
THE SUMMER CAMP MYSTERY
THE COPYCAT MYSTERY
THE HAUNTED CLOCK TOWER MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE TIGER’S EYE
THE DISAPPEARING STAIRCASE MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY ON BLIZZARD MOUNTAIN
THE MYSTERY OF THE SPIDER’S CLUE
THE CANDY FACTORY MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE MUMMY’S CURSE
THE MYSTERY OF THE STAR RUBY
THE STUFFED BEAR MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF ALLIGATOR SWAMP
THE MYSTERY AT SKELETON POINT
THE TATTLETALE MYSTERY
THE COMIC BOOK MYSTERY
THE GREAT SHARK MYSTERY
THE ICE CREAM MYSTERY
THE MIDNIGHT MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY IN THE FORTUNE COOKIE
THE BLACK WIDOW SPIDER MYSTERY
THE RADIO MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE RUNAWAY GHOST
THE FINDERS KEEPERS MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE HAUNTED BOXCAR
THE CLUE IN THE CORN MAZE
THE GHOST OF THE CHATTERING BONES
THE SWORD OF THE SILVER KNIGHT
THE GAME STORE MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE ORPHAN TRAIN
THE VANISHING PASSENGER
THE GIANT YO-YO MYSTERY
THE CREATURE IN OGOPOGO LAKE
THE ROCK ‘N’ ROLL MYSTERY
THE SECRET OF THE MASK
THE SEATTLE PUZZLE
THE GHOST IN THE FIRST ROW
THE BOX THAT WATCH FOUND
A HORSE NAMED DRAGON
THE GREAT DETECTIVE RACE
THE GHOST AT THE DRIVE-IN MOVIE
THE MYSTERY OF THE TRAVELING TOMATOES
THE SPY GAME
THE DOG-GONE MYSTERY
THE VAMPIRE MYSTERY
SUPERSTAR WATCH
THE SPY IN THE BLEACHERS
THE AMAZING MYSTERY SHOW
THE PUMPKIN HEAD MYSTERY
THE CUPCAKE CAPER
THE CLUE IN THE RECYCLING BIN
MONKEY TROUBLE
THE ZOMBIE PROJECT
THE GREAT TURKEY HEIST
THE GARDEN THIEF
THE BOARDWALK MYSTERY
THE MYSTERY OF THE FALLEN TREASURE
THE RETURN OF THE GRAVEYARD GHOST
THE MYSTERY OF THE STOLEN SNOWBOARD
THE MYSTERY OF THE WILD WEST BANDIT
THE MYSTERY OF THE GRINNING GARGOYLE
THE MYSTERY OF THE SOCCER SNITCH
THE MYSTERY OF THE MISSING POP IDOL
THE MYSTERY OF THE STOLEN DINOSAUR BONES
THE MYSTERY AT THE CALGARY STAMPEDE
THE SLEEPY HOLLOW MYSTERY
THE LEGEND OF THE IRISH CASTLE
THE CELEBRITY CAT CAPER
HIDDEN IN THE HAUNTED SCHOOL
THE ELECTION DAY DILEMMA
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication data is on file with the publisher.
Copyright © 2016 by Albert Whitman & Company
Published in 2016 by Albert Whitman & Company
ISBN 978-0-8075-0721-6 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-0-8075-0722-3 (paperback)
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mech
anical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
THE BOXCAR CHILDREN® is a registered
trademark of Albert Whitman & Company.
Printed in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 LB 20 19 18 17 16
Illustrated by Anthony VanArsdale
For more information about Albert Whitman & Company,
visit our web site at www.albertwhitman.com.
Contents
1. Not a Good Sign
2. Hard Times for Appleville
3. The Story of the Feather
4. Alice Takes the Stage
5. Who Is Albert Hund?
6. The House in the Woods
7. Questions at the Pet Store
8. A Sweet Idea
9. The Real Albert
10. Ready for Election Day!
CHAPTER 1
Not a Good Sign
“There’s the sign for Appleville ahead!” Six-year-old Benny Alden called out from the back seat of his grandfather’s car. “I see the big apple on it! We’re almost there.”
“Good. I was afraid we’d be late for Cousin Alice’s speech,” Benny’s sister, twelve-year-old Jessie said. “It’s so exciting that she might become the mayor of Appleville.”
Henry, who was fourteen and the oldest of the Alden children, checked his watch. “We should make it with plenty of time.”
“I can’t wait to see Soo Lee. We haven’t seen her in a while,” Benny’s other sister, ten-year-old Violet said. Soo Lee was Cousin Alice and Cousin Joe’s daughter. She was about Benny’s age and the Alden children always had fun when she was with them.
Suddenly a thump, thump, thump sound came from beneath the car. The car veered to the right as if it was going to go off the road. Grandfather struggled to bring the vehicle under control. Watch, the Aldens’ dog, yelped and crouched down on the seat. Everyone held their breath. When the car came to a stop, Violet cried, “What happened?”
Grandfather gave a sigh. “A tire blew out. It happens sometimes. Everyone all right?” he asked.
Jessie checked on Violet and Benny before she replied, “We’re fine.”
“We may be fine, but I’m not sure Appleville is,” Violet said, pointing to a trembling figure out the window.
The car had come to stop right underneath the Appleville sign. Usually the sign welcoming people to the town had an image of a big yellow apple with a smiley face on it and the slogan, Appleville: A Happy Place! in large red letters.
This time it was different. “Something is wrong with the sign,” Benny said.
“Someone has been painting on it,” Jessie said. A large black bird with a red head had been painted to look like it was flying over the apple, which now had a frown painted over the smile. The word “happy” had been crossed out and a new word painted above it.
“It says ‘cursed’ doesn’t it?” Benny asked. Benny was just learning to read. “It says, ‘Appleville: a Cursed Place!’”
“Yes, and there’s more,” Henry said. “Someone painted on the bottom of the sign too.”
Violet’s voice was shaky when she read the words aloud. “It says, ‘Move Away! You’ve been warned!’”
Benny hunched down in the seat. “I don’t know if I want to go to Appleville anymore. Why would Alice want to be mayor of a cursed town?”
“Someone is just playing a trick,” Jessie said, putting her arm around Benny. “A town can’t be cursed.”
“It’s terrible that someone ruined their sign,” Violet said.
“It’s also illegal,” Grandfather added. “Whoever did it is defacing someone else’s property.”
“I wouldn’t want to paint that kind of bird,” Violet said. “It’s very ugly.” Violet was a good artist. She liked to draw and paint birds and animals.
“What kind of bird is it?” Benny asked. He sat up and looked out the window again, feeling a little better.
“It’s some type of vulture,” Henry said. “See how small its head looks compared to its body? Vultures don’t have feathers on their heads so they look strange compared to other birds.”
“I wonder why the town hasn’t fixed the sign,” Jessie said. “It won’t make people want to visit Appleville.”
“We can ask Alice and Joe, but first we’ll have to do something about the tire,” Grandfather said before he opened the car door.
“How far are we from Joe and Alice’s house? Can we ride our bikes there?” Violet asked. The Alden children’s bikes were secured to the bike rack on their grandfather’s car.
“It’s not very far, but it’s getting dark and it’s chilly out.” Grandfather took his phone out of his pocket. “I’ll just call someone to come out and change the tire.”
“I can change it,” Henry said. “We have a spare tire in the trunk.”
“I’ll help,” Jessie said.
Grandfather thought for a moment and then nodded his head. “It’s nice to have such handy grandchildren.”
While Henry and Jessie were changing the tire, Violet and Benny got out of the car with Watch to look around. The only house they saw was set back across a field of dead grass. Next to the house were rows of small trees. Behind the house was a forest.
“Those woods look like where we found our boxcar,” Violet said.
After their parents had died, the Alden children were scared to go live with their grandfather, not knowing him and fearing he was mean. They had run away and found an old boxcar to live in until their grandfather found them, and they realized he wasn’t mean after all.
“It looks spookier than where we had our boxcar,” said Benny. The trees behind the house were tall and spindly and crowded close together. Bushes with dark leaves grew underneath the trees so it was hard to see very far into the forest. Benny shivered and glanced back up at the sign and the vulture. “I don’t know if I want to wait out here.”
“It’s only spooky because it’s getting dark,” Violet said, though she felt a little uneasy too.
“That’s a creepy, old house,” Benny said. “I wonder if anyone lives there.” The house hadn’t been painted in a long time. Some of the shutters hung crookedly from the windows.
“I think it’s empty. There aren’t any lights on and there are weeds all over the yard,” Violet said. A flash of red caught Violet’s eye. “Look! Maybe someone does live there. There’s a woman in a red jacket.”
An older woman with white hair wearing a red coat stood by a side porch looking up at the house.
Violet waved and called, “Hello!”
The woman didn’t turn around. Instead she walked around the corner of the house until she disappeared from Benny and Violet’s view.
“That’s strange,” Violet said. “She didn’t even wave at us.”
“We’re done!” Henry called.
“We just need to put away the tools and then we can be on our way,” Jessie added.
Watch began to growl. “What’s wrong, boy?” Benny asked. Watch growled again and then stalked forward, crouched low to the ground.
“He sees a dog over at the house,” said Violet. She pointed to a big shaggy brown dog staring at them from the steps of the house.
Watch crept toward the other animal. “Watch, come back!” Violet called. But Watch didn’t listen. He leaped forward and dashed off into the tall grass between the car and the house.
The big dog saw Watch running toward him. Even though Watch was much smaller, the shaggy animal acted scared of the little terrier. He turned and ran away into the woods before Watch could reach him.
“Watch!” Violet yelled.
Henry and Jessie heard Violet and hurried over to her and Benny.
“WATCH!” Henry shouted. Watch stopped and looked back over his shoulder.
Jessie whistled. “Watch, come back!” This time Watch listened. He bounded back to the car wagging his tail.
“It’s a good thing y
ou didn’t get lost,” Benny scolded the dog.
“Let’s go,” Grandfather said. “We should make it just in time.”
Everyone piled back in the car. As they drew close to town, they passed another sign. This one showed a smiling white-haired man wearing overalls and a train conductor’s hat. Words across the top of the sign read Charlie Ford for Mayor. Vote for Charlie and help Appleville chug into the future!
“That’s funny,” Benny said. “Towns can’t chug like trains. I thought Alice was going to be mayor.”
“Only if she gets elected,” Jessie explained. “Charlie Ford must be another candidate who is running against her. She’ll have to get more votes than he does to win the race.”
Benny laughed. “It’s funny to say Mr. Ford is running against Alice. It sounds like they have to race around a track to see who wins.”
“That would be fun to watch but not a good way to decide who is in charge of a town,” Henry said.
“I like Mr. Ford’s hat,” Benny said. “I wish I had a train conductor hat.”
“Mr. Ford is lucky no one painted on his sign,” Violet said. “I still can’t believe someone ruined the town sign.”
Benny wished Violet hadn’t brought up the Appleville sign. He didn’t want to think about a curse.
CHAPTER 2
Hard Times for Appleville
As they drove into Appleville and down Main Street, the Aldens were surprised to pass so many empty stores.
“The town is almost deserted,” Henry said. “It’s strange not to see anyone walking down the street.”
“I remember that building was an art supply store.” Violet pointed at a store with an empty window. “But the sign is gone.”
“And there was a café over there.” Jessie motioned to another building with a for rent sign in the window.
“I remember that place,” Benny said. “They had good chocolate milk shakes. And strawberry ones. And vanilla ones. It’s making me hungry to think about milk shakes.”
Everyone laughed. Benny was always hungry.
“What happened to the movie theater?” Henry asked as they drove past a boarded up building. “The roof is damaged and part of it has fallen in.” Yellow caution tape crisscrossed the front of the theater. A ripped and faded movie poster hung in a broken display window.
“I heard they had a terrible fire. It’s going to be torn down,” Grandfather said.
“That’s awful,” Violet said. “I don’t like to see Appleville like this. It is such a pretty old-fashioned town. Look! The toy store is still in business. And the pet store!” She bounced up and down in her seat, happy to see the store with a window full of pet supplies and posters of cute cats and dogs.